Embracing change for personal development

Philippians 3:13 – Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do,forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead

I would like to make you aware of two facts about effective change that result in personal development:

Never think you are through with change, life is a process of constant change.

In the above scripture one would have thought that a man of Apostle Paul’s status who had accomplished excellent results in life and ministry would retire and fold his hands but that was not the case; he put all his achievements behind him and set himself new goals to achieve. He discovered that no human being is ever finished with change; we are always in one state of change or another. The reason is because the wisdom of God is many sided and it will take eternity to exhaust the divine capacities He has put in us in Christ.

In everything in life, be it career, marriage, ministry, education, sports etc. you move from one stage to another. It is said that life comes in phases and men in sizes. It is the deception of the devil for you to think that you have reached the pinnacle of change in any area of your life. The human mind is like an elastic band, the more you stretch it the more effective it becomes. The more pliable you are to positive change the faster your personal development will be. So sit down and carry out a personal assessment of how quick you are to respond to positive change or how slow you are to respond to it. Find out if you are rigid or flexible. Remember a person has to be first honest with himself before he can be honest with others. A person who is not honest with him or herself is a hopeless case.

The God kind of change is from one level of positive change to another level of positive change and not always a change from negative to positive.

Some are of the opinion that change should always be from negative to positive but the God kind of change is meant to be from one level of positive change to another level of positive change.

From experience I have observed that most people do well when the change required is from a bad situation to a good situation because the negative situation is uncomfortable and puts immense pressure on the individual to find a way of escape by all means. But in Christ, the major part of our Christian life is programmed to be from one level of glory (positive change) to glory (another level of positive change). I have also observed that most Christians fall back and fail mostly in this area of one level of positive change to another because of the spirit of complacency and probably forgetting the purpose and value of lifelong personal development. Please be aware that today’s excellence is tomorrow’s mediocrity.

Friend, for us to be constantly relevant we have to be constantly developing ourselves. Constant development is required in every area, spiritual, physical, mental etc. I have taken it upon myself to do more physical exercise now than before to keep my body fit for what I have to do and to be healthy. I have dedicated a special time to fellowship with God daily in order to strengthen my relationship with Him. I read new materials every week to develop my mental awareness towards current issues. Most things I am learning today are not because I am in trouble or because I want a breakthrough but because I want to stay above and remain in charge of things in the ever-changing environment we live in.

Friend, success is never ending; you are meant to live from one level of glory to another level of glory. So, programme yourself for continuity in your journey of personal development. I see you become and remain relevant in Jesus’ mighty name.

Further reading

Psalm 18:29, 1Corinthians 13:11, Hebrews 5:14, 2Corinthains 3:18

Personal declaration for the day

I will embrace positive change to improve my life positively in Jesus’ name.

Questions for you to reflect on

How much change are you ready to embrace to improve your life?

What major changes have you made to improve your life?